Deuteronomy 5:16 Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you; that your days may be prolonged… 1. That the lives of some good men have been short, need not be proved. 2. How such dispensations of Providence may be accounted for, consistently with this promise. (1) When God takes His saints out of the world when young, it is sometimes a peculiar instance of compassion to them, in taking them from the evil to come. (2) They are, at their death, possessed of a better world, which is the best exchange. (3) Old age is not a blessing, unless it be adorned with grace. 3. We shall now inquire how far, or in what respects, we are to hope for and desire the accomplishment of the promises of temporal good things. (1) Temporal good things are not to be desired ultimately for themselves, but as subservient to the glory of God; and long life in particular is a blessing so far as it affords more space to do service to the interest of Christ in the world. (2) They are to be desired with an entire submission to the will of God, and a resolution to acknowledge that He is righteous, and to magnify His name, though He deny them to us, as considering that He knows what is best for us, and may do what He will with His own. (3) We are to desire that God will give us temporal good things in mercy, as pledges of eternal happiness, and not in wrath. Thus the Psalmist says, "There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Lord, lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us." 4. We shall now inquire with what frame of spirit we ought to bear the loss of temporal good things, which we have been encouraged by God's promise to hope for. In answer to this, let it be considered that if God does not fulfil His promise in the way and manner which we expect in granting us temporal good things, yet — (1) We must justify Him, and condemn ourselves; for none can say that he does not forfeit all blessings daily. Therefore we are to say He is a God of infinite faithfulness, but we are unfaithful, and not steadfast in His covenant. (2) We are not to conclude that our being deprived of temporal good things which we expected is a certain sign that we have no right to or interest in those better things that accompany salvation; as the wise man says, "No man knoweth either love or hatred by all that is before him."(3) We are to reckon the loss of temporal good things as a trial of our faith and patience, and endeavour, under such disappointments, to make it appear that the world was not the main thing we had in view, but Christ and spiritual blessings in Him were the spring of all our religion. 5. It may farther be inquired, What are those things that tend to make a long life happy, for which alone it is to be desired? And it may be observed that though in the promise annexed to the Fifth Commandment we have no mention of anything but long life, yet the apostle, when explaining it, adds, that they shall have a prosperous life, without which long life would not be so great a blessing. Thus he says, "That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long upon the earth." Now there are three things which tend to make a long life happy. (1) Experience of growth in grace, in proportion to our advances in age, according to that promise, "They shall bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing."(2) When we retain our natural abilities, and that vigour of mind which we have formerly had. This some are deprived of through the infirmities of old age, whereby they may be said to outlive themselves. (3) Old age is a blessing when our usefulness to others in our day and generation is continued. (Thomas Ridglet, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. |
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